Tonight A. wanted some sugar cookies. We were watching Elf and feeling festive, and he wanted to decorate and get his fill of frosting. Only…I am the baker in this marriage, and when it comes to sugar cookies, I’m not a frosting kind of gal.
I only love my grandma Sadie’s sugar cookies. She always keeps them in a big glass cookie jar, and they are delightfully crunchy, sweet, and tart. When I asked for the recipe, she sent me an index card covered in her beloved, sprawling hand:
Sadie’s Sugar Cookies
- 1 stick oleo (shortening) or butter
- 1/2 C oil
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 1/2 C flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1/4 tsp salt
Cream the first five ingredients in a mixer. Add the dry ingredients and mix well. Roll the dough into small balls. Flatten them with the bottom of a glass dipped in sugar. Bake at 350 for about 9 minutes (don’t let them brown).
I like them even better the second day! 
Unfortunately, A. wasn’t satisfied with my less-than-exciting approach to Christmas sugar cookies. So he took matters into his own hands. A series of mistakes followed.
First, he chose to be irritated with me for meddling with his baking and forcing suggestions on him. Then he chose a recipe for drop cookies instead of roll-outs. Things went downhill from there.
A few swears and some unused frosting later, I apologized for nagging, and he forgave me. And then this happened:
Ho Ho(listentoyourwifesheknowswhatshe’stalkingabout) Ho,
I make a very similar recipe. If you want to convert them into cut-out cookies, simply chill the dough for an hour first. Then, these can easily be rolled out on a floured surface, cut out with cookie cutters, and frosted. I prefer them without frosting, but with a small child in my house, that simply won’t fly so I usually making 1/2 with frosting and 1/2 without.
“Sadie’s Sugar Cookie” recipe was one of my favorite when I was raising children. I got it from a coworker. I liked to roll the balls in sugar and then flatten them. This was a part of my collection what we used to call “there’s nothing in the house to eat” recipes. That term came from my mother who lived through the depression. She always had a collection of recipes that took very basic ingredients. She could always come up with something good to eat even when the cupboards were at their barest. That’s were I got my love of baking from.